When im stopped and i floor it in drive it takes off slow and takes forever to get up to 80. I though this was odd so i tried it again from being stopped and held the shifter in first gear. I planted it and the rears lit up and the car sidestepped getting to 80 quick smart leaving a nice long black line on the ground.
I have a diff ratio of 2.92 and 235's on 17 inch rims. Nearly brand new tires.

Does this mean my auto is not getting into first when it is in drive? Is this normal? How can i fix it?
When in drive i can feel the gears change but they are very soft changes.
Is it bad to shift it manually without a manual valve body?

Im still unsure if the kickdown makes a difference or not. They couldnt get the kickdown rod to fit cos of the firewall. They reset the timing so it revs higher before changing now. Feels about right anyway. Not sure if it goes to first or not. It has a shirt load more power now but still only spins the rears when taking off when manually putting the car in first. It isnt a slug taking off in drive though anymore.
The timing change has made a massive increase in power they must have done it completely wrong the first time.
Im not going to worry about the trans anymore, it responds good enough for me. I might just throw in a quicksilver B and M for the ratchet action and leave it at that.

Im not sure but the wreckers where i bought everything gave me the rod and showed me where it connected on the carb on an engine they had there.
There is definately more power when putting it in first manually though.